The annual food and present giveaway organized by the school’s leadership class brought the holiday spirit to about 115 homes across Okaloosa and Walton counties this year, thanks to donations from businesses and individuals.

“It’s not just about the holidays, it’s about giving people support,” said junior Tyler Margaretten, who oversaw the financial portion of the project with his identical twin, Blane. “(And) without the community, this project wouldn’t flourish.”

Students began preparing for this year’s event about a month after school started. They quickly realized that it would be their biggest to date.

On the day they started bagging up the two weeks worth of food for each family, they’d collected more than 25,000 food items and about $45,000 to buy fresh food and gifts for the children in each family, Blane said.

According to Tyler, that’s a big jump from last year, when students helped 83 families and raised about $35,000.

“For the past 15 years this program has been growing exponentially,” said Tyler, who added that students helped five families the first year of the program.

According to seniors Sarah Slife and Angela Roy, who oversaw the entire project, it required a lot of organization and time to prepare.

“At first it was really overwhelming,” Angela said with a smile. “But after we got the flow of things, it just made things better.”

To begin, Sarah and Angela met with guidance counselors at schools across Okaloosa County. They asked the counselors to help identify families who might need a little extra help this year.

Families who were interested in participating then filled out questionnaires created by Sarah and Angela to help ensure they got exactly what they needed.

In addition to food and holiday gifts, the students provided financial support, whether it be paying an electric bill or giving the families a voucher for a free haircut.

All the items were delivered Thursday — either at the families’ homes or another place designated by the parents — following a trip to Walmart where most of the $45,000 was spent.

“This project just really kind of shows you how helping other people can make you feel better about yourself,” Sarah said.

The annual food and present giveaway organized by the school’s leadership class brought the holiday spirit to about 115 homes across Okaloosa and Walton counties this year, thanks to donations from businesses and individuals.

“It’s not just about the holidays, it’s about giving people support,” said junior Tyler Margaretten, who oversaw the financial portion of the project with his identical twin, Blane. “(And) without the community, this project wouldn’t flourish.”

Students began preparing for this year’s event about a month after school started. They quickly realized that it would be their biggest to date.

On the day they started bagging up the two weeks worth of food for each family, they’d collected more than 25,000 food items and about $45,000 to buy fresh food and gifts for the children in each family, Blane said.

According to Tyler, that’s a big jump from last year, when students helped 83 families and raised about $35,000.

“For the past 15 years this program has been growing exponentially,” said Tyler, who added that students helped five families the first year of the program.

According to seniors Sarah Slife and Angela Roy, who oversaw the entire project, it required a lot of organization and time to prepare.

“At first it was really overwhelming,” Angela said with a smile. “But after we got the flow of things, it just made things better.”

To begin, Sarah and Angela met with guidance counselors at schools across Okaloosa County. They asked the counselors to help identify families who might need a little extra help this year.

Families who were interested in participating then filled out questionnaires created by Sarah and Angela to help ensure they got exactly what they needed.

In addition to food and holiday gifts, the students provided financial support, whether it be paying an electric bill or giving the families a voucher for a free haircut.

All the items were delivered Thursday — either at the families’ homes or another place designated by the parents — following a trip to Walmart where most of the $45,000 was spent.

“This project just really kind of shows you how helping other people can make you feel better about yourself,” Sarah said.